The North Carolina General Assembly passed the state budget on Friday, Sept. 22 when the final vote in the state House was taken.
Although the $30 billion budget finally won approval in the state House and Senate, it’s not quite over the finish line.
Governor Roy Cooper has three choices when it comes to bills passed by the legislature. He can sign them into law. He can veto them and send them back or he can sit on his hands doing nothing and the bill becomes law without any action by the governor in ten days.
Cooper, who is a Democrat, has said that he will not sign or veto the state budget passed by the Republican led legislature. Cooper has ten days to change his mind, but he announced on Friday that he would allow the budget to become law without his signature.
There is a lot in the budget the Cooper doesn’t like, but it also includes Medicaid expansion something Cooper has been trying to get passed since he first took office in early 2017. In 2019 Cooper vetoed the budget that didn’t include Medicaid expansion. The Republican legislature was unable to override the veto and the state operated without a new budget until 2021. In odd years the state passes a two year budget that is revised in even years.
While Medicaid expansion is in the budget, gambling expansion is not. One of the issues holding up passage of the budget was that the state Senate was in favor of including legislation to allow four new gambling casinos in North Carolina and the state House was not. The House won that battle, but the war over legalizing new casinos in North Carolina is far from over.
The budget includes an average raise of 7 percent for most state employees including teachers over the two year budget cycle. School bus drivers receive a 9 percent raise and Highway Patrol officers an 11 percent raise over the two year budget.
UNCG receives $8 million for upgrades to IT infrastructure and NCA&TSU received $25 million in recurring allocations to support efforts to become a R1 research institution, enhance agricultural research and extension programs and to establish the Engineering NC’s Future program.
Typical Roy Cooper, sit on his hands and do nothing.
EXACTLY!
Medicaid is health insurance for indigents. If my memory is correct, this Medicaid expansion in Guilford County will now encompass 37% of our population. A city and country run by Democrats.
How bout only 6%.
13.5% at the poverty line…that doesn’t include the additional folks who are at 138% of the poverty line that are now getting free “health insurance.”
Cone Health already sucks, can’t wait for even longer wait times and more record profits for the “Not-for-profit” health system…
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/guilfordcountynorthcarolina/PST045222
New entitlement money and qualifications will equal 37% of Guilford County residents.
Give it, and they will come.
$30 billion
Roy’s just looking for a job in DC. Should fit in quite well.
Well, that is how he made it from Atty General to be the Gov. As a faux-Hunt Democrat.
Too many people assume Medicaid is for people who don’t want to work. Guess what you assume wrong. I am disabled and can’t work. I had Medicaid for a couple of months until the date changed to December. Now I have nothing until then. I’d rather be working but am unable to. Don’t judge what you don’t understand and don’t assume.
I am sorry for your personal situation but that should not require me to take food out of my family’s mouth to subsidize your health insurance.
Not quite the same. You can get Medicaid if you are disabled (which means you can’t work). After two years of disability, you can qualify for Medicare or Medicare Advantage. If you are not disabled, you can qualify for Medicaid if you don’t exceed the maximum qualifying income.